Talk:Sexuality in ancient Rome

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Suggestion for "Rape and the law"

Hi all,

Just some notes on the section quoted below as I am currently completing a thesis on this topic.

"As a matter of law, rape could be committed only against a citizen in good standing. A woman who worked as a prostitute or entertainer lost her social standing and became infamis; by making her body publicly available, she had in effect surrendered her right to be protected from sexual abuse or physical violence. Cicero defended a client whose misdeeds included the gang rape of an actress on the grounds that young men took customary license with entertainers. The rape of a slave could be prosecuted only as damage to her owner's property, under the Lex Aquilia."

Firstly, I think this could benefit from clarifying that the laws that are most similar to our definition of rape today - stuprum per vim and raptus (Papakonstantinou, Raptus and Roman law, 22) - only applied to citizens of good standing. Rape against others could be covered in law, but the majority of sexual offence laws were indifferent to consent, as is the case for the rape of slaves. The nonconsensual/violent rape of slaves was covered in law, with action available through the Lex Aquilia, iniuria, and the praetorian action for corruption (Dig. 48.5.6pr; Robinson, The Criminal Law of Ancient Rome, 59; see also Dig. 47.1.2.5, 47.10.9.4, 47.10.25; Paul Sent. 2.26.16), but these were indifferent as to whether the slave had consented and (as said above) were perceived as damage to the owner's property (Gaius Inst. 3.222). They also focus on the chastity/pudicitia of the slave, indicating that unchaste slaves would not be protected (somewhat confirmed in Dig. 47.2.39, 47.2.83; Paul Sent. 2.31.12).

Secondly, Gardner actually says on p135 n15: "What the attitude of a Roman judge might have been to a rape charge brought by a prostitute (or rather on her behalf, since as infamis she could not do it herself) is a matter for speculation. Sexual relations with married prostitutes or women (e.g., barmaids) in work associated with prostitution were not held to constitute adultery (Quint. Inst. 7.3.6; Paul Sent. 2.26.11), but rape involved the extra factor of force (vis)." It does generally seem that they lacked the protection granted to others (aside from the passages discussed by McGinn, the law simply does not cover them for sexual violence), but it is not completely certain due to the lack of evidence and Gardner is already cited for that passage.

It might also be beneficial to note that the claim Cicero defended was an informal accusation as part of character assassination, not an actual part of the official charges against Plancius, as this may have influenced how the accusation was dismissed.

Thank you :) ResponseBee (talk) 05:01, 17 July 2025 (UTC)[reply]